Hill Country Escape

We spent three days in the Canyon Lake area next to the Guadalupe River. This was a fun getaway for all of us in our group, which included ages from 4 to 42. It is an area that can be visited multiple times and still have new places to explore. San Antonio is a short drive away, several caverns in the area offer exploration, and nearby San Marcos offers a very large outlet mall for those who like to shop.

Top of the list to escape the Texas summer heat in this little area has to be water recreation. Canyon Lake is a picturesque lake nestled in the hills west of New Braunfels and San Marcos. The Comal, San Marcos, and Guadalupe Rivers provide lots of relaxing fun with just enough low rated rapids to liven things up a bit. And, of course, don't forget New Braunfels' famed Schlitterbahn water park.

We stayed at Summit Vacation Resort located on River Road, which crosses and winds alongside the Guadalupe river from New Braunfels to Canyon Lake. There is an alternate less winding route from New Braunfels to the resort, but we like driving up River Road. The views of the river and the winding road slowed our pace, taking all of us physically and mentally from the interstate and our (er..my) usual Texas highway speeds.

In New Braunfels we visited Gruene, a historical village within New Braunfels city limits, where we ate lunch at the Grist Mill restaurant overlooking the Guadalupe. Next to the Grist Mill is Gruene Hall, the oldest dance hall in Texas. We stopped here for a rest and checked out the memorabilia of those who have graced this hall. George Strait has a revered spot on one of the walls here.

This area features a great selection of locally owned restaurants. We enjoyed great Texas barbecue at Rudys Country Store and Barbecue in New Braunfels, delicious burgers at San Marcos River Pub and Grill overlooking the San Marcos River, and Tex-Mex food at Canyon Lakes's La Casa Del Lago.

We drove around Canyon Lake and down roads with really great hill country views. On one of our adventures, we took FM 32 (Devils Backbone) to a drive through Wimberly, and made notes of places to more fully explore on our next visit.

Quick Tips:

Explore the area. Robert Frost, who wrote the poem "The Road Not Taken," took long visits to this area and even lived in San Antonio for awhile. Don't be afraid to venture out on unknown roads and don't just take the straightest, fastest route from point A to point B. Lots of nice scenery in the area and many unique small towns.

If you visit in the summer, and especially if you are on the water, don't forget the sunblock. The river water is cold so it can deceive you by keeping you comfortably cool while you are frying like bacon.

For visitors info of the area contact New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce at nbcham.org or (800) 572-2626.
Also, stop at the San Marcos Visitor Center on Interstate 35 in San Marcos. There are some elderly ladies in this center that are very sweet and helpful.

Best Way To Get Around:

A car is a must to get anywhere, but park at Gruene and walk around to see the town. If you drive into San Antonio River Walk area, take one of the river taxis at least once.

We stayed three days and two nights in a log cabin at the Summit Vacation Resort on River Road at the Guadalupe River just below Canyon Lake and a few miles from New Braunfels. The resort is both a camping and timeshare resort affiliated with Coast to Coast campgrounds and RCI. We had a lovely small cabin that slept eight comfortably. (Three adults and the rest were our kids.) Sleeping arrangements were a living room sofa sleeper, a bedroom with four bunk beds, and a loft bedroom with a full size bed. We also had a full kitchen and cable TV. The interior is rustic with wood from floor to ceiling.

There are several onsite activities including swimming pools and miniature golf. The swimming pools were not crowded, but we were there during the week with off and on rain the first couple of days. The younger kids played miniature golf, and all enjoyed the swimming pools that were right behind our cabin. We are looking forward to more stays here.

Great location, great atmosphere, and great hamburgers. The restaurant is located in the historic village of Gruene. Sit outside on the deck overlooking the river and enjoy your meal. Their food is country American, with chicken fried steaks, burgers, fries, etc. Most of us had burgers, my sister had the pork loin sandwhich (she said it was very tender and juicy), and one child had the chicken strips off the child's menu. These were tender, juicy and lots of food for a good price. Kids' meals were around $5 and burgers around $7.

The view is wonderful over the river watching and listening to the water flow. I read where someone stated that it feels like you are in a tree house. I completely agree to that description, and believe that it is probably the most appropriate one sentence anyone can say about the atmosphere while sitting on the deck.

Our service was great. There were several in our party (9 total). We had a large picnic-like table with benches that accomadated all of us. We were there during a crowded lunch time and even with our large group we had an exceptional waitress who was there filling our drinks and checking on our needs without us asking.

The only slightly negative aspect we encountered (I stress slightly negative) is that the onion ring orders are small. No problems with the quality at all. They are very good large onion rings, but only about four to an order that cost $3 to $4.

Everything else was perfect with great burgers and large orders of fries that two can easily share. I love really good burgers. Add to it the feeling of picnicing in a tree house overlooking a river, and I am hooked.

I would recommend this to anyone, and of course for families. Dress is very causal.
Visit their website at www.gristmillrestaurant.com

The food at this Mexican restaurant is fairly good. The best bet is the nachos. They are large orders that are loaded with toppings. The kids had leftovers for lunch the next day and they were still good. We didn't have alcoholic beverages, but we noticed the beer prices are very reasonable at around $2 to $2.50 depending on the brand, making this a good place to stop and have an order of nachos with a beer.
We would go back for a quick bite when we are staying at Canyon Lake.

This is part of a small chain of restaurants that originated in Leon Springs as a country store. There are locations in Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma.

The restaurant is exactly what it states, a country store and barbecue joint. It's very easy to get to as it is on loop 337 (aka hwy 46) in New Braunfels, not far from I-35 at the corner of Common Street. The food is very good and the restaurant has a very relaxed atmosphere. As you walk in you stand in line at a large ice bucket where you can grab an ice cold drink. Then you place your order and wait there for them to bring you a tray of food with no plates, just paper. The barbecue is good, offering sandwiches, brisket, chicken, and sausage. The prices are reasonable with most items around $5 or less.

Dining is either inside or outside in a covered open air patio. We chose to eat outside which was very enjoyable. I had the sausage and a loaded baked potatoe, two of my kids shared a half chicken, and one had a barbecue sandwich. All of it was very good.

We will go back again. This is a very family friendly restaurant and it's a very reasonably priced place to take the whole family.

You can check out their website at www.rudys.com

The San Marcos River Pub and Grill is located on the San Marcos River a short distance from interstate 35. Stop at the San Marcos visitor center on the interstate and the ladies there will point the way (there is a road beside this center that will take you straight to the restaurant). They offer inside and outside dining on both a covered porch and a deck overlooking the river. We sat and watched ducks playing in the water alongside people swimming and floating in tubes and canoes.

The food here is exceptionally good offering hamburgers, sandwiches, and local specialty dishes such as pecan chicken. Someone at the table next to us had the pecan chicken and claimed it was delicious. Most of us, however, had the hamburgers which were exceptional with wonderful homemade buns.

When we were through dining we walked down from the deck to the base of the restaurant at the river, where we watched the ducks on the shore. The place is landscaped very nicely and the atmosphere is wonderful.

There were no negatives about the food at all. It was very good and plentiful for less than $10. The waiter was very friendly and was able to answer our questions regarding the tubing on the San Marcos River. They even had brochures about the tubing rentals which are operated by the Lions Club.

This is a place that I would dine at again and would recommend to almost anyone who wants to kick back and relax. It is great for families as they have large tables and the kids loved watching everyone playing in the water. Possibly the only drawback might be that we became envious of everyone in the water, but then again they weren't enjoying our delicious burgers.

check them out on the web at www.riverpubandgrill.com

If you take FM 32 from just south of Wimberley to Blanco, you will see some remarkable views of the hill country. Some of the Texas tourism sites label this scenic drive as The Devils Backbone. Along this highway are roadside picnic areas with lookout points that are great for pictures and for picnics.

We drove up from Canyon Lake to intersect with FM 32 then on up further to Wimberly. We didn't get out and walk around Wimberly because we didn't allow for the time to do this, but have already made plans to next year. Wimberly is a touristy town with lots of shops and from what I understand it is somewhat of an artists haven.

Our drive was very peaceful and lots of fun. Even the kids didn't seem bored. Lots of deer on this scenic drive, even got a picture of one from inside our car while turning around. They just seem to stand there and not be too concerned about us.

I enjoyed driving around and looking at views and sites. I also liked exploring and taking little roads just to see where they go. My suggestion is go to Wimberly and/or Blanco using this route. Possibly take a lunch or grab something from a fast food place and picnic at one of the roadside spots or at least just stop and enjoy the views.

Gruene is an old town that is now a historic district of New Braunfels. To get here from New Braunfels, take Gruene Road north from Hwy 46 or go south on Hunter Road from Hwy 306. This community is full of novelty and antique shops in historic buildings. It is enjoyable to stroll the streets and walk through the buildings offering both a unique view of our history along with shopping opportunities. There are maps located at various locations throughout the town, for help in finding a specific place.

This is the home of Gruene Hall, the oldest dance hall in Texas. In the evening, you can listen to live music from either inside or outside the building. It has screened windows that remain open in the summer allowing the music to flow through the town. The atmosphere is terrific here, with old wooden floors and bench tables. It is extremely casual, and not unusual in the summer to see people in flip flops and shorts right alongside those dressed in boots and wranglers. It is not air conditioned here so the shorts and flip flops are sometimes more appropriate in the Texas heat even at night.
How do you find it? Just find Gruene and the water tower. You can't miss it, especially when the music is playing.

The Gristmill restaurant with its view overlooking the Guadalupe river is located behind Gruene Hall. This is a great place for hamburgers. They also have outside public bathrooms, just for info if you are walking around.

For Texas music fans, Lone Star Music store is located in Gruene. They feature Texas/Red Dirt artists. If you buy music from their website you will enjoy the store. If you are not familiar with this music genre, check out the store and listen to the music.

While we were walking around the town, my youngest kids found a family of lizards sunning on the landscaping in front of one of the stores. The owner of the store told us the lizards were always there. The older girls loved shopping at some of the shops that offered jewelry. There was a nice shop offering a good selection of candles, where we purchased a few. We stopped at The Grapevine, a wine tasting room that features Texas wines. We actually didn't sample the wines, but we enjoyed seeing the brands and where they were made and we bought ice cold root beers there. And we all enjoyed the general stores that offered all kinds of specialty items.

This is a place I would recommend to the whole family. You can visit them on the web at www.gruenetexas.com

The Guadalupe River between Canyon Lake and New Braunfels is a major destination for tubing, rafting, and canoeing. It is a very picturesque river, with cypress trees lining the banks, and views of hills and limestone cliffs.

This section of the Guadalupe flows along slowly except for just enough rapids to make things a little fun while floating down. There are several river recreational outfitters that offer tube, canoe, and raft rentals along with shuttle service to or from a drop off or pick up point, making a float trip effortless. Best times to do this with a family would be on the weekdays to avoid crowds. Contact the New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce for a list of river outfitters and lodging choices. www.nbchamb.org or (800) 572-2626

As an alternative, the Comal River in New Braunfels and San Marcos Lions Club in San Marcos offer short trips that are great family fun.

On this particular trip we didn't participate in any activities on the river because it has been a very rainy year with flooding. The lake is very full and the rate of the flow from the dam has made the river too fast at times for getting on the river. On top of that, the daily possibility of rain and cooler temperatures resulting from all of the rain and cloud cover made a river trip in ice cold water not as appealing. The water was still very tempting so we had to at least wade a little.

However, the rain did make all the vegetation exceptionally green for late July. We enjoyed the views of the river and sitting on our deck at our resort just relaxing. For a great scenic drive of the river, slow down a little and travel up river road from New Braunfels to Sattler.

We found out about the Lions Club Tube Rentals while dining at the San Marcos River Pub and Grill. This is a great deal for family fun. They offer tube rentals at $6 for regular tubes and $8 for tubes with bottoms. They also have double tubes available for $12-$14. This price includes unlimited shuttle service all day long. The profits from the Lions Club rentals go directly to benefit local charities. Also here there is the San Marcos city park with a very nice pool with slides. The admission to the pool is $2-$3. Together, the park and the tube rentals offer a day full of family-friendly fun.